The family of Tyneside newly weds have slammed an insurance company over its treatment of the couple when the bride needed hospital treatment during her honeymoon in Mexico.

Michelle Green travelled to the Riviera Maya on August 27 after tying the knot with husband Dave Cowell.

But their trip turned into the honeymoon from hell just four days into the trip when Michelle’s leg started to swell up and she was taken to hospital.

The 44-year-old was diagnosed with pulmonary artery disease, but staff at the hospital demanded £3,000 up front before she could be treated.

Michelle’s sister Jackie Welford said: “She couldn’t get hold of the insurance company and she rang me in tears in the middle of the night saying she needed money for treatment.

“We managed to get the money to her the next day and she was put on treatment.”

But Michelle’s condition worsened and turned to deep vein thrombosis, the family said. When she was readmitted to hospital on September 9, her family say that she was unable to walk more than a few feet, and her left leg was 7cm bigger than the right.

Jackie said: “Being in the hospital was really stressful for her because of the language barrier – she would ring for water but still not have any hours later.”

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Michelle was eventually discharged from hospital four days later, having missed their flights home on September 11.

But the newlyweds were horrified to be told that their insurance company, ‘PayingTooMuch.com’, would not pay for any further medical bills, accommodation or their tickets to get home.

As such they have had to fork out hundreds of pounds for an extra six nights accommodation and for their flights back to the UK.

Jackie has accused the company of “continually looking for ways not to pay out”.

She said: “The reason they gave eventually was that she didn’t have worldwide cover, but Michelle called in July to upgrade the annual policy to include Mexico and was told she was already covered for Mexico but not America.”

Three weeks after going to Mexico, the honeymooners flew back to Frankfurt today and are due to catch a connection to Manchester Airport arriving home in Wallsend tonight. They had to borrow money to cover the cost.

Their family have started an online fundraising page.

Jackie said: “She had a fabulous wedding day and it’s such a shame that their honeymoon has been such a disaster.”

A PayingTooMuch.com spokesman said the firm is regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and follows its complaints procedure. This can end with intervention from the Financial Ombudsman, which can settle a claim if a mistake is made.

The spokesman added: “In this case PayingTooMuch.com will assist and expedite the complaints process in order that our customers may reach a final conclusion as quickly as possible.”